Asian Markets Track Wall Street Higher

(RTTNews) - Asian stock markets are trading mostly higher on Tuesday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders seemed reluctant to make more significant moves amid what is likely to be a quiet week due to the Christmas Day holidays. Optimism about more interest rate cuts by the U.S. Fed next year is aiding market sentiment. Asian markets closed mostly higher on Monday.

The Australian stock market is trading slightly higher in on Tuesday after briefly dipping into the red, extending the sharp gains in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is staying a tad above the 8,200 level, with stocks across sectors trading mixed amid a lack of direction ahead of the Christmas holidays.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 13.00 points or 0.16 percent to 8,214.60, after touching a high of 8,215.80 and a low of 8,193.50 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 13.20 points or 0.16 percent to 8,465.90. Australian stocks closed notably sharply higher on Monday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group and Rio Tinto are losing almost 1 percent each, while Fortescue Metals and Mineral Resources are edging up 0.2 percent each.

Oil stocks are mostly higher. Origin Energy and Beach energy are edging up 0.3 to 0.4 percent each, while Woodside Energy is gaining almost 1 percent. Santos is edging down 0.2 percent.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is losing 1.5 percent, Zip is declining more than 3 percent and Appen is down almost 2 percent, while WiseTech Global is gaining more than 1 percent and Xero is edging up 0.1 percent.

Gold miners are mostly lower. Gold Road Resources, Newmont and Evolution Mining are edging down 0.1 to 0.5 percent each, while Resolute Mining is declining 2.5 percent and Northern Star resources is losing almost 1 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank is edging down 0.1 percent, while ANZ Banking, Westpac and National Australia Bank are edging up 0.1 to 0.2 percent each.

In economic news, members of the Reserve Bank of Australia's Monetary Policy Board said that the country's gross domestic product continues to be subdued and is softer than expected, minutes from the central bank's December 9-10 meeting revealed on Tuesday.

At the meeting, the RBA Policy Board held the cash rate target at a 13-year high of 4.35 percent. The previous change in the interest rate was in November 2023, when it was lifted by 25 basis points to the highest level since late 2011.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.624 on Tuesday.

The Japanese stock market is trading modestly lower on Tuesday, reversing the gains in the previous session, with the Nikkei 225 falling to be a tad above the 39,000 mark, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, with weakness in index heavyweights and some exporter stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index closed the morning session at 39,055.35, down 105.99 points or 0.27 percent, after hitting a low of 38,995.76 earlier. Japanese shares ended significantly higher on Monday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing almost 2 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is declining almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Honda is skyrocketing more than 15 percent and Toyota is edging up 0.2 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is losing more than 1 percent and Tokyo Electron is edging down 0.1 percent, while Screen Holdings is edging up 0.5 percent.

In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is edging up 0.2 percent, while Mizuho Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are gaining almost 1 percent each.

The major exporters are mostly lower. Panasonic is losing more than 1 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is edging down 0.5 percent, while Canon is gaining almost 1 percent. Sony is flat.

Among the other major losers, Toho is losing 5.5 percent, while Fujikura, DeNA, Furukawa Electric and Rakuten Group are declining more than 3 percent each. Mercari is down almost 3 percent.

Conversely, Mitsubishi Motors and Chubu Electric Power are gaining almost 3 percent each.

In economic news, members of the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Board noted that Japan's economy is growing consistently and is expected to continue expanding above trend, minutes from the central bank's October 30-31 meeting revealed on Tuesday.

At the meeting, the BoJ Policy Board decided to maintain the uncollateralized overnight call rate to remain at around 0.25 percent. This was the highest since late 2008. The BoJ ended its negative interest rate policy in March and lifted the benchmark rate in July to the current level.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 157 yen-range on Tuesday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong is up 1.2 percent, while New Zealand, China, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and Indonesia are higher by between 0.1 and 0.8 percent each. South Korea is bucking the trend and is down 0.3 percent.

On Wall Street, stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Monday after showing a lack of direction early in the session. The major averages added to the strong gains posted on Friday, further offsetting the sell-off seen last Wednesday.

The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 climbed firmly into positive territory as the day progressed, while the narrower Dow posted a more modest gain. The Nasdaq jumped 192.29 points or 1.0 percent to 19,764.89, the S&P 500 climbed 43.22 points or 0.7 percent to 5,974.07 and the S&P 500 rose 66.69 points or 0.2 percent to 42,906.95.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index crept up by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index closed just below the unchanged line and the German DAX Index dipped by 0.2 percent.

Crude oil prices settled lower Monday amid concerns about possible excess supply in the market, while a stronger dollar also weighed on oil prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February dipped $0.26 or 0.3 percent at $69.20 a barrel.